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By Bloomberg

Vodafone Group Plc named Sunil Sood the chief executive of its Indian unit, succeeding Marten Pieters as the leader of one of the U.K. company’s fastest growing markets.

Sood, 53, most recently has been responsible for operations in India, managing profits and loss and developing new businesses including Vodafone’s mobile payment platform in the country, M-Pesa, the company said today in an e-mailed statement.

Pieters, 61, has run the Indian unit since 2009 and helped build it into Vodafone’s third-largest by revenue, accounting for almost 11 percent of sales, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Vodafone is emphasizing high-growth markets outside of Europe as it grapples with price wars and saturated markets in its older business.

“Marten has successfully led Vodafone India through a period of rapid evolution,” Vodafone’s Africa, Middle East, and Asia-Pacific chief Serpil Timuray said in the statement. “The business will remain in good hands with Sunil who has also been integral to the growth of the company.”

Sood, an Indian national, joined Vodafone from the Hutchison business the company bought in 2007. Before entering telecommunications, Sood worked for PepsiCo Inc. in India and served as chief executive officer of Pepsi in Bangladesh.

Pieters, a Dutch citizen, will remain on Vodafone India’s board in a non-executive capacity.

Vodafone, based in Newbury, England, is the biggest mobile- phone operator outside of China. The company is the second- largest mobile phone company in India, behind Bharti Airtel Ltd.

The change in leadership will be effective from April 1.

A new chief operating officer for the Indian until will be announced “in due course,” Vodafone said.

Shares of Vodafone fell 0.7 percent to 236.5 pence in London at 12:50 p.m. in London today. The stock has declined 20 percent over the past 12 months.